


if you would’ve just let me in (who knows what could’ve been?)

by leiasfate



Category: Percy Jackson and the Olympians - Rick Riordan, The Heroes of Olympus - Rick Riordan
Genre: Angst, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, Eventual Happy Ending, F/F, Feelings Realization, Fluff, Not Actually Unrequited Love, Pining, Post-The Blood of Olympus (Heroes of Olympus), it’s all about the yearning, unattainable love
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-07-18
Updated: 2020-10-06
Packaged: 2021-03-05 08:01:37
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 9
Words: 20,544
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25347388
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/leiasfate/pseuds/leiasfate
Summary: “Annabeth.She was the epicenter of Piper’s inner turmoil, and it all had started with that damn prophecy.At night, she no longer dreamt of electrifying blue eyes.She dreamed of grey ones.”
Relationships: Annabeth Chase/Percy Jackson (Mentioned), Annabeth Chase/Piper McLean, Jason Grace & Piper McLean, Percy Jackson & Piper McLean, Piper McLean & Leo Valdez
Comments: 6
Kudos: 95





	1. Chapter 1

After defeating Gaia, Piper McLean thought everything would get back to normal. Well, as normal as it could be when one was a demigod.

But obviously, things never seemed to go the way she wanted them to.

After getting back to camp, they’d only had a few weeks to relax until they had to start a new year in high school. Most of those weeks were spent mourning Leo, though, until they got that message from him  kindly informing them that he was alive. Anger and bitterness had settled on her chest, because she’d spent endless nights crying on Jason’s shoulder, or sneaking out to sit behind the Athena cabin with Annabeth.

_Annabeth._

She was the epicenter of Piper’s inner turmoil, and it all had started with that damn prophecy.

Her relationship with Jason had been amazing during the months they spent building the Argo II, but as soon as they set sail, it felt like he was a thousand miles away. But as she and Jason grew apart, Annabeth and her spent more time together. She consoled and helped her friend fight the hopelessness that sometimes overwhelmed her. They spent their nights talking until their throats were dry, and Piper even managed to make her laugh at least once per day.

That changed when they found Percy. Obviously, Annabeth wanted to spend every single moment of the day by his side, and she couldn’t blame her. But Piper  missed  her, especially when she had no one to have midnight talks with because Jason would say no more than ten sentences to her and call it a day.

Then, Annabeth and Percy fell into Tartarus.

The daughter of Aphrodite could still feel the phantom pain that had inhabited her heart for days as they made their way to the House of Hades. She acted strong in front of the group, only to go back to her quarters and agonize over the possibility that she could’ve done more to help them. The image of Annabeth’s anguished face as she fell haunted her, burning behind her eyelids whenever she closed her eyes.

Jason had started to snap out of his hot and cold attitude and supported her, knowing that she was in pain without having to ask. Their relationship was slowly mending, and his kindness and patience were so infinite that Piper couldn’t help but feel unworthy.

Then, they did the impossible. They managed to pick up Annabeth and Percy before something even more tragic happened. Piper hadn’t had time to even realize the couple was there while she fought monsters, but as everything settled down, her eyes landed on the daughter of Athena.

Relief flooded her body as she saw her, battered up and with her clothes torn apart. She threw all caution out of the window and wrapped her arms around Annabeth, a sob escaping her throat as tears fell down her cheeks and into the other girl’s neck. Annabeth’s grip on her shoulders and waist was weak, but it was enough to reassure her that she wasn’t dreaming.

After going back to the ship, they started meeting up on the deck in the middle of the night, just like before. But she knew Annabeth was avoiding her nightmares, so she never mentioned or asked about Tartarus. Sometimes, Annabeth’s eyes would glance at her with sorrow and panic, keeping silent until she snapped out of her thoughts.

They didn’t have much time to talk during the day, since they spent it with their significant others, but Piper kept glancing over at her friend, who hadn’t smiled in forever.

Jason had asked her if she was still worried, to which she nodded.

Of course she was worried, that was all. Annabeth was her best friend, and she wanted her to be okay. That was the only reason for her concern.

She loved Jason.

Their quest in Sparta had left Piper feeling breathless, and not just because of what they’d had to face. Annabeth had looked so sad on their way to the Temple of Fear, that she wanted to do everything in her power to never see her like that again. Things got worse when they were in the temple, though. Her friend was utterly terrified, with no coherence to even make out complete sentences.

Piper lead and managed to be strong enough for both of them, but Annabeth was frozen on the spot, so she did something that would get her to focus. She cupped Annabeth’s face in her hands and brought their foreheads together, looking straight into her eyes and telling her to stop thinking. They’d been so close that she could memorize every feature of the other girl’s face.

At night, she no longer dreamt of electrifying blue eyes.

She dreamed of grey ones.

* * *

She hadn’t talked to Annabeth since summer vacation ended. The daughter of Athena had gone to her dad’s house and would start school, while Piper and Jason left camp to look for Leo.

That trip turned out to be disastrous, for more reasons than she could count. Both her and Jason were distant, barely opening up to each other. The doubts in her mind grew with each day that passed, making it difficult for her to actually be a supportive girlfriend. Hera had handcrafted their entire relationship, placing fake memories in Piper’s mind, and ironically enough those were the memories she cherished the most. Their attraction hadn’t been developed organically, it was just a ploy.

It wasn’t that she didn’t love her boyfriend. Of course she did, but it was not romantic love.

When they gave up on finding Leo and went back to California for school, she tried to act like things were normal between them. But as October rolled around, she decided enough was enough. She couldn’t keep leading Jason on when she didn’t have feelings for him.

He took it surprisingly well. He understood her reasons, and assured her that their friendship wasn’t ruined, but he needed time alone. She agreed, and convinced her dad to pay for Jason’s tuition in a private school in Pasadena.

Even though Piper was the one to break up with him, she still locked herself up in her room and cried. She cried for breaking Jason’s pure heart, cried because she hated having confusing feelings for her best friend, cried because said best friend had already found the love of her life and would never reciprocate.

Who would’ve thought? A daughter of Aphrodite, suffering from unrequited love.

Not even two days since the breakup had passed when she got a call from the person she longed to see more than anything in the world.

Seeing her name on the phone screen made Piper’s heart stutter.

“Hello?”

“ _Piper_.”  Annabeth said her name like she was running out of breath.  _ “Are you okay?” _

She frowned. “I’m good. Why? Did something happen?”

_ “No, nothing happened. It’s just that I had a dream last night.”  _ Annabeth paused.  _“You were crying in your room.”_

“Oh.” Piper was dreading having to talk about what happened, but she knew Annabeth would still find out eventually. “I— uh, I broke up with Jason.”

She squeezed her eyes shut while silence passed between them, her stomach in knots.

_“Gods, Piper. I’m so sorry. What happened?”_

“I realized I couldn’t keep lying to myself, and to him.” She sighed. “I’m not in love with him anymore. I’m not even sure if I ever was.”

“ _Oh_.”  She could almost picture Annabeth’s understanding expression.  _ “I wish I was there with you right now.” _

Her heart clenched as a feeling of yearning settled on her chest. “It’s okay.”

_ “No, it’s not. You’re my friend, Piper, I want to be there for you. Especially after everything you’ve done for me.” _

“Annie—“ The nickname was supposed to get Annabeth’s attention, since she wasn’t too fond of it, but it didn’t.

_“I’ll visit you during Thanksgiving break.”_ Annabeth’s voice was hard and determined, so she knew the decision was final.  _“If you’ll have me, of course.”_

“Of course I’ll have you.” Piper blushed at how fast she’d jumped to answer. “But what about your family? What about Percy?”

“ _They’ll understand it. Even if they get mad, which I doubt, I’ll still go see you.”_

“But you don’t have to—“

_ “It’s settled, McLean.”  _ Annabeth interrupted her again.  _ “You know me, I won’t back down from this argument.” _

She laughed genuinely, a smile curving her lips. “Yeah, you won’t.”

Annabeth chuckled lightly.  _ “So I won, right? See you then?” _

“Yeah, you did. See you then.”

* * *

  
  


Piper spent the next few weeks pacing around the big house, fixing every little thing she encountered. Her dad was away filming a new movie, so they would have the house to themselves. She prayed to all the gods that Annabeth wouldn’t choose the empty bedroom next to hers. The proximity could be enough to kill her.

Before she knew it, the bell that sounded like Beethoven’s Für Elise rang, and she ran downstairs to open the door.

The sight before her was enough to send her heart into a frenzy. Annabeth’s grin was blinding, her grey eyes gleaming as she pulled her into a hug.

“Pipes.” The girl muttered against her neck. “Hi.”

She took a sharp breath, catching the scent of Annabeth’s hair. “Hi, Annie.” 

“How are you?” Her friend broke the embrace, but kept her hands around Piper’s forearms.

“Better, now that you’re here.”

Her eyes widened at her own confession. She wanted to die right then and there, but Annabeth’s subsequent smile and slightly pink cheeks were reassuring that she hadn’t overstepped.

When she realized she’d been staring at the other girl’s eyes for too long, Piper cleared her throat. “So, um, do you want to choose your room?”

“Sure. Is there one close to yours?”

_ Damn. _

“Y-Yeah.” She grabbed Annabeth’s suitcase. “Let’s go.”

She led the way towards the room, her face feeling hot and her hands sweating. She berated herself for letting that happen. Piper McLean never, ever lost her cool.

“Here we are.” She opened the door. “My room is the one right next to this one.”

“Great.” The blonde beamed. “It amazes me how this room is fully furnished and has a tv, though.”

“That’s just ‘cause my dad spares no expenses.” She winked. “Do you want me to leave you to unpack while I order dinner? And then we can watch a movie or something.”

“Okay. What’re you ordering?”

“I was thinking alfredo pasta.”

“I love alfredo pasta.” Annabeth smiled once again, and it was a sight she would never get bored of. “You remembered.”

“Of course I did.”


	2. Chapter 2

Piper looked at herself in the mirror, fixing some stray hairs and looking for any flaw on her face. Their food had arrived and she‘d been about to knock on Annabeth’s door, but something had compelled her to look at her appearance first.

Apart of her brain knew she was being ridiculous, it wasn’t like she would seduce Annabeth or anything. But still.

She knew her friend would want to ask her about her break up with Jason, but honestly, she didn’t have the energy for it. She could end up saying too much and confessing something that would make Annabeth never talk to her again.

The mere thought made her shiver.

“The pasta is here and—“ She stopped on her tracks when she saw Annabeth‘s bunny pajamas, letting out a laugh.

“What’s so funny?” The blonde frowned.

“Your pajamas.” She bit her lip to keep herself from grinning. “They’re adorable.”

“Well, my dad thinks I’m still a little girl and got them for me.” Her face was crimson red. “Good to see you find it amusing.”

A light giggle escaped her lips, as she looked at Annabeth and realized a strand of hair was falling down on her face. Piper left the plates on the bed, walking towards the girl and pausing when she was inches away from her face. Her fingers reached up to place the strand behind her ear, as grey eyes analyzed her every move.

“You look cute, though.” Her voice was barely above a whisper.

She couldn’t read the expression on the blonde girl’s face, but they were so close that if she moved, their noses would touch. They hadn’t been that close since the Temple of Fear.

Annabeth’s sharp intake of breath snapped Piper out of whatever spell she’d been under. What the hell had even compelled her to invade her personal space? She was her friend, and she was in a very real relationship.

She hadn’t been thinking at all, her mind had fixated on just being close to Annabeth.

The brunette cleared her throat, stepping away and directing her gaze at the tv. “So, um, do you want to watch a movie or something while we eat?”

The daughter of Athena looked at her with an emotion that she guessed was confusion, but then shook her head, as if snapping herself out of it. “S-Sure.”

She turned away, trying to slow down her racing heart. Gods, that was so dumb of her. Annabeth had only been there for a few hours and she already couldn’t keep herself in line. At that rate, her friend would notice what was happening before the end of her visit.

Piper grabbed the remote and sat on the bed, her back reclined against the pillows. Annabeth did the same, but thankfully the space between them was filled by the plates of pasta. Her mind was so far gone that she didn’t even pay attention to what movie she’d put, and she ate almost robotically.

Her palms were still sweaty by the time they finished eating, her neck stiff from looking straight ahead because she didn’t want to look at Annabeth after the uncomfortable situation they’d been in. Wordlessly, she placed the plates on the floor and continued watching whatever she’d picked. She closed her eyes for a second, realizing she was actually pretty tired.

The girl risked glancing at Annabeth, who actually seemed to be closer to her than before. To her surprise, the blonde had already been staring at her when she turned around. She looked tired, too, her eyes on the verge of fluttering shut. Annabeth quietly scooted closer, her arm wrapping around Piper’s torso.

Her body tensed up, but relaxed immediately as she realized Annabeth wasn’t mad about the awkwardness she’d put her through. Her forehead rested on the other girl’s clavicle, closing her eyes. She didn’t even think about just leaving and sleeping on her own bed. The warmth and proximity made her forget about her conflicted feelings and pain, if only for a while.

* * *

As soon as Piper woke up, she felt a body on top of hers, a leg tangled with her own. After a brief second of disorientation, she remembered she fell asleep with Annabeth. It had happened before, but strangely enough, it’d never been on a bed. And it certainly hadn’t been under the same circumstances.

She tried to move as slowly as she could, but Annabeth tightened her grip, mumbling something unintelligible. In an ideal world, she would’ve stayed, but instead she pulled a pillow from under her head and replaced her body with it. Grabbing her phone from the night stand, she tiptoed out of the room, not before looking back at the blonde, who didn’t seem to notice the change.

It was only 7 AM, so she walked to the kitchen to make coffee and think about what they would have for breakfast. Her cheeks burned up as she thought about how domestic the whole thing was.

Gods, would the whole visit be filled with sweaty palms and red cheeks? Why had she even agreed to it? She’d have to learn how to subdue her emotions. She prayed that her stupid, useless feelings would be gone by the time they had to go back to Camp Half-Blood, which was six months away. Moving on was the only option she had.

On top of that, she had to figure out what she’d do with her life. Sure, she was about to graduate high school, but what about after? Frank had already offered her a spot in New Rome University, if she passed that weird exam they had, but she didn’t even know what she wanted to study. Not many demigods made it that far in life, and she wasn’t so sure she would be one of them. For all she knew, she was moments away from dying in battle.

Either way, there was no use dwelling on it. If she did, she‘d start obsessively staring at Katopris every time there was even a hint that a monster would come her way.

As she poured coffee into her cup, she heard a voice behind her.

“Good morning!”

Piper turned around to see the personification of sunshine. Annabeth looked positively radiant, as did her hair, eyes shining and not a hint of sleep on her face.

Immediately, a smile formed on her lips. “Good morning, Annie. Did you sleep okay? Want some coffee?”

“Yes, I did sleep well. And absolutely yes to the coffee.”

“Here.” She placed a cup in front of Annabeth and sat with her at the kitchen island. “You woke up before I had time to make breakfast, you know.”

Annabeth chuckled, almost bashfully. “You don’t have to do that, I can help you.”

“I’ll have you know that I’m quite the chef. I learned how to cook all kinds of meals because I didn’t want my dad to hire any more caretakers for me. Especially after discovering I’m a fucking demigod.”

“How’s your dad, by the way? Is he still filming?”

“He’s great, I talked to him two days ago. I think he’ll be filming until the Christmas break.”

“So you’ve been alone ever since I called you?” Piper nodded, and the blonde sighed. “I’m sorry I couldn’t come sooner.”

The pity on her grey eyes was almost unbearable. Of course, everyone felt bad for her because she’d actively helped her dad forget his kidnapping, which also meant he forgot about her being a demigod. She had to lie to him for the rest of her life, to keep him sane. She was truly alone, in more ways than one.

But she just wished people would stop reminding her about it.

“It’s okay. My dad has to work, and  you  have to go to school, just like me, so don’t worry.” She threw in a wink for good measure. “Do you want to go down to the beach at night?”

The other girl stared at her with a puzzled look on her eyes, head tilted to the side.

“Why are you looking at me like that?”

“I’m just wondering if you think we’re never going to talk about you know what.”

“I’m...” She swallowed thickly, unable to look away from her. “I just don’t think it’s worth it.”

“Of course it is.” Annabeth reached out and took Piper’s hand. “I can tell that you’re in pain.”

Oh, if only she knew that Piper’s pain didn’t come from the break up. It wasn’t the real reason, the deeper reason. The truth was that she wrestled day and night with a love that would never be, and it hurt so much that her lungs felt like they were set on fire. It hurt so much that it was painful to breathe.

“I’m perfectly fine, Chase.” Her tone was ice cold. “Now if you’ll excuse me, I’ll be in my room.”

She retracted her hand from Annabeth’s, instantly feeling empty. Her feet dragged her away as fast as they could.

“Piper, wait...”

She couldn’t look back, not with tears threatening to fall from her eyes and clouding her vision. She kept walking until she was inside the safety of her room, where she buried her head in the pillow and cried.

* * *

Piper spent the whole day staring at the ceiling and scrolling through her phone with puffy eyes, promptly ignoring Annabeth’s texts and calls after knocking on the door for hours hadn’t worked. Apparently, her friend had made breakfast (and lunch) for both of them and left it in front of the room, but she couldn’t get up. Her mind literally begged her to stay on the bed.

She knew she’d been rude out of nowhere, which was another reason to stay right where she was. Annabeth was probably disappointed with her for it. After all, she had just been trying to help, she had no clue of what was actually going on.

Sighing, she decided that it was time to apologize for being an ass and hope that she’d be forgiven. Her hands rubbed at her eyes as she walked to the bathroom to take a quick shower before going out.

After getting ready, Piper finally left her cave and saw the food, her heart breaking a little bit. A wave of guilt hit her, as if she hadn’t already had enough guilt to go around.

She didn’t bother to knock, stepping into Annabeth’s room. The girl was sitting on the bed with a book on her lap, but she looked up immediately.

“Piper.”

She knew it. She knew the disappointment was to be expected, so why did she suddenly feel the urge to cry again?

“I’m sorry for being such an ass.” Her voice broke, but she didn’t care. “I’m so sorry, Annabeth.”

Instead of saying anything, Annabeth stood up and engulfed her in a hug. Piper’s shoulders loosened, her worry lessening. “It’s okay, I’m sorry too. I shouldn’t have pushed you.”

“You were just trying to help.”

“You scared me by staying in your room all day. I only knew you were alive because I could see you online on social media.”

She couldn’t help the laugh that left her lips, pulling away a to look at Annabeth’s face. “You stalked me to see if I was alive?”

“Well, you didn’t leave me much of a choice.”

All the amusement faded from her face. “I’m sorry. How can I make it up to you?”

Annabeth looked out at the window. “The sun’s all gone. Maybe we could go down to the beach like you said? And you have to eat the food I made you.”

“Okay, done. Is that it?”

“Yes, that’s it. I’ll be low maintenance for the rest of the day.” The blonde smirked. “Can’t say the same about the rest of my stay, though.”

“Then I’ll do my best to keep you well maintained.” She tried not to think about the implications of that. “Now come on, let’s grab some blankets and the food.”

They did exactly that and made their way to the stairs that led to the beach, walking in a peaceful silence. Annabeth stopped on her tracks when she saw a pile of firewood.

“Can we make a bonfire?” There was a hint of excitement in her voice.

“Sure.” Piper smiled.

It took them some time to finish the bonfire, but they managed. Annabeth sat beside her on a blanket, basking in the warmth of the fire as she fixed Piper with a glare to get her to start eating.

“I haven’t been doing so great either.” The daughter of Athena looked down at her legs. “Percy and I haven’t seen eye to eye lately. I know that I’m pressuring him with his schoolwork and the SAT, but it’s because I know he can do it. He  needs  to do it if he wants to graduate on time. He says I don’t understand him, and maybe that’s true, but I don’t know what else to say or do.”

She blinked a few times, surprised that Annabeth had opened up so suddenly. She wasn’t an expert on advice, but she could do her best for her friend.

“First of all,” she turned her body so that they were face to face, “you’re one of the most understanding people I know. And second, maybe you two should... talk things out calmly. Without arguments. Just listen to what he has to say, and let him do things at his own pace.”

“It’s so hard for me to not be in control of everything. But I know you’re right, I’ve been thinking about that too.” Annabeth gave her a half-smile. “We argue a lot, even over our financial situations. Maybe it’s because we haven’t seen each other since the summer. I love him, but... our relationship is so different now. Sometimes I think we should’ve just stayed friends.”

Her eyes were filled with water, and Piper’s chest ached with the need to comfort her. She grabbed her hand, much like Annabeth had done earlier, and squeezed it.

“I’m so sorry, Annie.” A lump formed on her throat. “Try to do what I said, have a talk with him. I’m here for you, for whatever you need. Always. You know that, right?”

Annabeth nodded, her thumb rubbing circles on the back of Piper’s hand. Then, she gasped quietly. “Piper... your eyes.”

Her eyes were multicolored, or sometimes changed colors whenever they wanted to, but what had been so surprising?

“What is it?”

The blonde leaned closer. “They— they look like mine.”

Her heart was wildly beating as she felt Annabeth’s breath tickling her face, who hadn’t pulled away. Hell, why wasn’t she pulling away? Piper looked down at the blonde’s lips, which were slightly parted. 

_ No. No. No. _

With all the strength she could muster, she slowly withdrew from Annabeth’s bewitching personal space. It felt like her soul was being torn apart, but she knew she’d done the right thing. Annabeth was emotionally vulnerable, and had a boyfriend. She would never take advantage of that.

“Uh—“ She looked at the fire to avoid the other girl’s gaze. “It must be because I sympathized with you.”

“Y-Yeah, that must be it.”

Was it her imagination or did Annabeth sound disappointed?

“Yeah.” Piper had to change the subject before the situation became too awkward and she ran for the hills again. It was time for her to open up, at least partially. “My memories of Jason were fabricated, you know that. Just an elaborate lie made by Hera and encouraged by my mother. And... for the longest time, I wanted to believe it didn’t matter. I wanted to believe I was truly in love with him, but I wasn’t.”

Grey eyes looked at her intently, patient and understanding.

“I realized I couldn’t be with him anymore, it was hurting us both. I— I was more sad about breaking his heart than about the relationship ending, to be honest. I really care about him, he’s one of my best friends. If he doesn’t hate me, that is.”

Jason had said it was okay and that he understood, had even hugged her after she dumped a whole speech on him, but they also hadn’t talked ever since he left for Pasadena. Deep down, she knew that boy didn’t have even a sliver of resentment in his heart, but still. She missed him a lot.

“I’m sure he doesn’t hate you, Piper.” Annabeth reassured her, what had transpired moments before already forgotten. “What you did was for the best, and I’m sure he can see that.”

“I know, but...” She sighed. “I have an irrational fear.”

The blonde smiled. “Everything will be alright, you’ll see. You’re impossible to hate, McLean.”

A small smile curled her lips, too. She hoped Annabeth was right, and that things would turn out okay.

She needed them to.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> As to why they use phones so openly... let’s say Leo created an interceptor for their phones so that monsters couldn’t track their signal.


	3. Chapter 3

Eventually, they went back inside the house, each sleeping in their separate rooms. Piper had to put an effort on distancing herself if she wanted to get over Annabeth as soon as possible. 

The next day, it was the daughter of Athena who woke up first. Breakfast and coffee were served by the time Piper got to the kitchen, which made her feel completely embarrassed. She was the host and hadn’t made food, not even once. She’d have to step up, because Annabeth had one day left in Malibu. She wouldn’t stay as long as they’d initially thought, because her dad had some business to attend in town and would take the opportunity to pick up his daughter.

And to think Piper had already wasted one day by sulking in her room. Ugh.

She probably wouldn’t see her again until next summer.

That was great, right? It would do her good to spend some time apart from the girl she was so desperately in love with. It wasn’t like her heart was being ripped from her chest by the mere thought of not seeing her in person for so long.

“Piper, come look.” Annabeth’s voice snapped her out of her thoughts.

They were at the mall, since Annabeth wanted to buy things for her siblings and her dad. Thankfully, no one had approached her for being Tristan McLean’s daughter yet.

“Yeah?” She looked at her friend, who was holding an astrology book.

“This book describes people’s personalities and other traits based on their birthday. It’s kinda cool.”

Piper quirked an eyebrow. “You, Annabeth Chase, Miss Logic herself, are into astrology?”

A light blush crept up the blonde’s cheeks. “I’m not into it, I just find it interesting.”

“Uh-huh.”

“Anyway, yours says that you’re an excellent story teller, and well-liked, not just due to charm but because you take the time to make others happy.” Annabeth smiled. “Well, I know that’s true.”

“Yeah, I  _ am  _ an excellent story-teller.” She smirked. “Maybe there’s some truth to these things after all.”

“So arrogant, McLean.” Annabeth dramatically placed a hand on her chest, rolling her eyes. “I meant the other part. That you take time to make others happy.”

“You think so?”

“I know so. You’ve made me happy more times than I could count.”

That was it, she was about to explode. Annabeth couldn’t just say sweet things like that to her, it was driving her crazy. All she wanted was to kiss her senseless.

Instead, she mentally counted to ten and clenched her phone tightly in her hand, not showing any signs of distress. “You make me happy too, Annie.”

The grin she got in return was enough to light up the whole store.

How was she supposed to survive the whole day?

* * *

After hours of walking around, they finally went back home. Piper had been too hung up on what Annabeth had said to even notice how much time had passed. But her mind had been clear enough to buy the blonde a gift while she was in another store.

It was a rose gold necklace, with an owl pendant made of diamonds. She’d give it to her before she left the next day.

She got ready for bed and took it out of the box to look at it again. As she admired it, there was a knock on the door. She hid it inside her nightstand’s drawer quickly, standing up.

“Come in!”

“Hey, Pipes.” Annabeth stepped towards her, almost hesitatingly.

“Hey. Everything okay?”

“Yeah, um, it’s just that—“ If Piper didn’t know any better, she would’ve thought the blonde was ashamed. “I had a nightmare last night. Could I sleep here with you?”

Her stomach dropped. She knew how horrible nightmares could be, how much agony they could cause. She wanted to know what her friend had dreamed so that she could reassure her, but she wouldn’t pry.

“Of course. Let me get changed and I’ll be right back, okay?” Piper spoke softly. “You can lay down if you want.”

Annabeth nodded immediately, and moved to do what she had suggested.

Had she used charmspeak? She hadn’t intended to, and doing it accidentally hadn’t happened ever since discovering the truth about her parentage. How odd.

Brushing it off, she stepped into the bathroom and closed the door, rushing to wash her face and change into her pajamas. All the while, she was thinking about how they were going to sleep. Last time, they had been too exhausted to even think, so Annabeth sleepily wrapped her arms around her. The other times they’d fallen asleep together were when they sat on the floor, leaning against a wall, and Piper always ended up with her head on the blonde’s shoulder.

But now they were both fully awake, so she didn’t know what to do.

Taking a deep breath, she walked back into the room and laid down beside the other girl. She started scrolling through her phone, hyper aware of Annabeth’s presence at her side. An uncomfortable heat rose to her face, as she pretended she was looking at something very interesting, which she obviously wasn’t.

“Do you have nightmares too?” Annabeth thankfully broke through the awkward silence.

Yes, of course she had nightmares. She saw her dad being held captive and in pain, she saw Annabeth and Percy falling into Tartarus. She saw Jason falling from the sky and never opening his eyes again, she saw Leo dying in explosions.

And most recently, she saw Annabeth dying in her arms because Piper wasn’t fast enough to save her.

She put her phone aside before answering, looking directly at the other girl. “Yeah, I do. I think all of us deal with them, and with different fears.”

“Mine are about Tartarus, mostly.” The blonde took a shaky breath. “Also about me being alone, looking for the Athena Parthenos.”

“I’m sorry I didn’t save you.” The words stumbled out of her mouth before she could stop them.

“Piper, that’s not your fault. You couldn’t have saved me, there was nothing left to do.”

“Well, I should have!” A wave of self-hatred hit her. “You didn’t deserve to go there. If anything, I should’ve taken your place.”

She felt Annabeth tense up, her jaw clenched and eyes wide. “Don’t you dare say that.”

“Annabeth...”

“No.” Her voice was firm. “That happened for a reason, Piper. And if it had been you, I don’t know what would’ve happened to me. I would’ve gone mad before we even reached the House of Hades.”

“Oh, so you think I was just relaxing and playing around while you guys were down there?” She turned on her side, propping herself up on her elbow, suddenly angry. “Well, I wasn’t. It was excruciating being on the ship and knowing you were in pain.”

With those words, the grey eyes she adored softened.

“I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to suggest that. It’s just that... I’ve had dreams about you falling instead of me.”

_Oh._

“I— I’ve dreamed about you too.” She swallowed a knot on her throat. “About me not being able to save you.”

She could feel sadness radiate off of Annabeth in waves, and chastised herself for it. Damn, could she do anything other than make her sad? That was the last thing she wanted. She should’ve just kept her mouth shut.

“Can you promise me something, Piper?”

She had to bite her tongue before wholeheartedly agreeing without even asking. Piper was ready to do or give her anything she asked for.

“What?”

“Promise me you’ll stay alive. No matter what quest you are tasked, no matter what monster comes after you, no matter what battle you’re in. You have to survive.”

That was a hard one. Just the day before, she had been wondering if she would even live to be a full-grown adult. But Annabeth was looking at her with those vulnerable grey eyes, pleading for her to say yes.

When had she ever been able to deny her anything?

“I’ll try my best, sweetheart.” She let the term of endearment slip without a second thought. “But only if you promise to do the same.”

“I promise.”

“Good.”

The blonde girl put her arm around her, the other one on the back of Piper’s neck, pulling her into her collarbone. The hug filled her with warmth, as she prayed to her mom to hide the obviousness of her accelerated heartbeat.

“Do you want to sleep?”

She chuckled. She didn’t feel sleepy at all, actually. A confession of your deepest fears would do that to you. “Not really.”

“Well, then.” Annabeth backed away, moving to lay on her back and then pulling Piper with her. “Let’s talk.”

“Sure.”

“So... what do you want to talk about?”

She couldn’t just blurt out ‘I want to talk about you’ or something weird, so she gave an educated answer. “Maybe your hopes... your dreams. The things you want in life.”

“You know everything about me.” She felt the vibration of Annabeth’s chuckle. “Come to think of it, you know me better than anyone.”

Happiness bloomed within her at the knowledge that she was Annabeth’s confidant. Every word the daughter of Athena had ever uttered to her was engrained deeply in her brain.

“I’m sure there are things we haven’t talked about, though.”

“Oh, I think I haven’t told you this yet.” The girl paused, and she knew it was because it was a hard subject. “My mom visited me.”

Piper looked up at Annabeth’s face. “She did? When? What’d she say?”

“Yeah, just before I started school. She thanked me for what I did, and weirdly enough, she apologized.”

_As she fucking should._

Even though it had been well hidden, she had watched Annabeth be worried over being a disappointment to her mom, stressed over completing an almost impossible task.

“Athena should be proud of you. I am proud of you.”

“T-Thank you.” Her lips trembled as she smiled, as if she was stopping herself from breaking down.

Piper had to change the subject before they both started crying. “Anyway, what do you plan on designing next, Miss Architect?”

“I was thinking about a gym for camp. Like, an actual air conditioned room with treadmills and other stuff.”

“That’s genius, Annie. I would totally live in there.”

“Because you’d have a whole space to yourself?”

“Exactly. I’d sneak out of the cabin every night and sleep there.”

“Then I’ll get to designing it right away. You don’t really like sharing your space, do you?”

“It depends.”

“On what?”

“I can share, just not with a lot of people like in the cabin. I’d share with people I’m specially close to.”

“And am I someone special?”

“Take a guess.”

Annabeth looked down at her, and then looked at the way her own arm was wrapped around the brunette’s body. A light laugh left her lips. “Yeah, I think I might be.”

“I bet you’re already used to sharing, though.”

“Oh, definitely, but it does get overwhelming. Sometimes I just want to be alone.”

“Then maybe you should build a secret room in that gym. We can go when we want to be on our own.”

“You know what? I will. I’ll just not put it in the blueprint I’m going to show Chiron.”

She made a fake gasp. “Annabeth Chase, being sneaky? Never would’ve thought.”

“Shush. I can be a baddie too.”

The seriousness of her voice while uttering those words made Piper burst out laughing, unable to contain herself. Annabeth stared for a few seconds and then cracked up, laughing along with her.

If she’d been paying attention to anything other than the sound of Annabeth’s laugh, Piper would’ve realized it was the first time she fully stopped thinking about all of her worries.


	4. Chapter 4

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> lots of tears

“...So that’s how I ended up being babysat by Meryl Streep.”

Piper didn’t know how much time they had spent talking, but it was just like old times. She was happy that nothing had changed.

“I can’t believe you know everyone in Hollywood.”

“Come on, I wouldn’t say everyone.”

“The Rock is your godfather, Piper.”

“Yeah, but—“ She trailed off as she finally looked away from Annabeth, seeing that sunlight was peeking out from the curtains. “Annabeth! What time is it?”

The girl scrambled to pull her phone out from her pajama pocket, eyes widening when the screen lit up. “It’s 7:30! Gods, my dad sent a message telling me he’d be here by 8!”

So soon? She thought she’d have more time with Annabeth before she had to say goodbye.

“Come on, then.” She got up, feeling like there was no air in her lungs. “I’ll help you pack up.”

Annabeth stood up and stared at her with a look she couldn’t quite decipher, but not saying a word.

“Is something wrong?”

“No, I—“ The blonde stopped herself and smiled. “Everything’s fine, let’s go.”

They went into the room next door, staying quiet as Annabeth started packing what she had pulled out of her suitcase. If it had been Piper, she would’ve just pulled out the clothes she would wear day by day, so that she wouldn’t have to do her suitcase all over again. But of course, Annabeth was perfectly organized and kept everything tidy.

She loved that about her. While she was a messy fire, Annabeth was calming ocean waves.

She tried to help her by handing her stuff, but she felt like her mind was in a fog. She could only think about the inevitability of things changing. In those months of not seeing each other, what if Annabeth moved on from their friendship? Or worse, what if she found a new best friend who wasn’t so irrevocably in love with her?

“Piper?”

She snapped out of her thoughts, looking at her friend. “Yeah?”

“I was asking if you could pass me that charger you’re holding.”

“Um, sure.” When had she even picked that up? “Here you go.”

“Are you okay?”

“Yeah.” She quickly thought of something to say. “I was just thinking about camp. Do you think we’ll get sent on another quest?”

“I sure hope not.” Annabeth sighed. “I wish we’d just have a normal summer.”

“Maybe  I’m the one who’ll be sent on a quest.” 

Another opportunity to die. Yay.

“And you think I wouldn’t go with you?” The blonde closed her suitcase, looking up at Piper and raising her eyebrows in question.

“You literally just said you want a normal summer.” She deadpanned. “I’ll go with Jason if it’s during the time he’s there.”

“I said  _ we _ , not  _ I _ .” Annabeth apparently had a short temper when it came to her, because her annoyance was obvious. “And what if Jason’s not there? Also, there’s three people on a quest, not two.”

“Annabeth, we don’t even know if that’s even going to happen.” She softened her voice, making sure to stare into her eyes. “Don’t think about it, okay? You’ll have a wonderful summer.”

The daughter of Athena looked confused, like she was in a haze, but then nodded.

“Good.”

“Did you just... charmspeak me?”

She had. It wasn’t the wisest course of action, but she just wanted Annabeth to stop thinking about things that hadn’t even happened yet.

“I wanted you to stop worrying. Did it work?”

“Yes, it did. Still, you shouldn’t have done that.”

“I know.” She gave her a sad smile, and suddenly remembered the gift she’d gotten her. “Wait here, I have something for you.”

Before Annabeth could ask any questions, she sprinted to her room and grabbed the box, her hands trembling.

“Hopefully this’ll make up for charmspeaking you.” Piper gave her the box, holding her breath as the blonde started to open it.

“Oh.” Annabeth got the necklace out, looking at it with surprise. “It’s so beautiful, Piper. You didn’t spend a lot on it, did you?”

Actually, she’d spent like three thousand dollars, but she wouldn’t say that. Annabeth sounded so happy that Piper wouldn’t have minded if it had cost her ten million.

“I didn’t. So you liked it, right?”

“I loved it.” The girl was beaming. “It really is beautiful. Would you put it on me?”

She nodded, swallowing thickly. She stepped closer as Annabeth turned around and handed her the necklace. It would be so easy to just lean down and leave a kiss on her neck.

Shaking those fantasies out of her head, she closed the clasp. “Done.”

Annabeth faced her, her fingers playing with the pendant. “Thank you so much, Piper.”

“You’re welcome.”

Gods, not again. They were too close for her to handle. She felt a magnetic pull beckoning her closer, prompting her to close the gap between them. She fought against it, telling herself that she couldn’t, that it would ruin everything.

Thankfully, Annabeth’s phone rang loudly, and she walked away to answer it.

“Hey, dad. You’re at the gate? Okay.”

Piper felt like she was falling, falling, falling. She knew it would happen, had prepared for it ever since Annabeth stepped foot inside the house, but she still felt like the ground was being pulled from under her.

“L-Let’s get you to the car.”

They walked in silence, and she felt like every step was killing her inside bit by bit. She didn’t want to say goodbye. If only she had never realized her feelings... everything would be much easier.

She finally found the courage to look at Annabeth when they were outside, in front of Mr. Chase’s car. The man waved at her as he put his daughter’s stuff on the trunk.

“I guess this is goodbye, huh?” Annabeth sounded defeated.

_ Don’t go.  _ Her mind begged for the words to leave her mouth.  _ Don’t leave me. _

“Yeah. I’ll really miss you, Annie.”

“I’ll miss you too.” As usual, Annabeth initiated the hug. “We’ll call each other often, right? Don’t forget about me.”

Piper closed her eyes, trying to commit to memory the feeling of the other girl’s arms around her. “Of course we will.”

Forget about her? That would be impossible. There was not a day that would go by where she wouldn’t think of her.

Annabeth broke the embrace, looking at her with unshed tears in her eyes. “Goodbye, Piper.”

“Goodbye.” Her voice sounded unsteady, even to her own ears. She was trying to keep it together until they left.

The blonde and her dad got into the car, and Annabeth waved at her from the window. She raised her hand and waved back, waiting until she couldn’t see the car anymore to sit in the middle of the driveway and stare emptily. Her chest felt hollow, as if there was something essential missing.

She looked back at the house that was entirely too big for her, finally letting a single tear fall from her eye.

She was alone again.

* * *

** Christmas Break **

It had been a little less than a month since Annabeth had left, and Piper could confidently say she was making progress on moving on. The first few days had been hard, but she managed. Her dad had come home for the holidays, so that kept her distracted and happy.

The weekly texts she got from Annabeth reminded her that she still loved her, though. It was proving to be a very difficult process.

“Darling, there’s someone who wants to see you.” Tristan McLean poked his head in his daughter’s bedroom door, smiling.

She frowned, getting up from the bed and following her dad. “Who would come to see me?”

“You’ll see. They’re downstairs.”

When she reached the stairs, she saw a boy with glasses looking up at her with a grin.

Jason Grace.

The joy she felt made her run down, almost falling. She jumped into his arms and hugged him, as he spun her around.

“Jason!”

“Pipes!” He laughed and set her down. “Got room for one more to celebrate the holidays?”

“Of course.” Her face hurt from smiling. “I missed you so much.”

“Me too. I’m sorry I couldn’t contact you, I didn’t know that the school would be so strict with its rules.”

“It’s okay, you’re here now.” She reached out for his hand. “Wanna take a walk on the garden?”

It was what they used to do back when he still lived with her. She desperately needed something familiar.

“I’d never say no to that.”

“So, how’d that school go?”

“Not too bad. But forget about that, I want to know how you’ve been doing.”

Suddenly, the grass became very interesting. “I’m great.”

Jason fixed her with a pointed glare. “Are you sure?”

“Yes! Why wouldn’t I be?”

“Because I know you, Pipes. I could tell that your heart was uneasy even back when we defeated Gaia. There’s something that’s been troubling you for far too long.”

She stayed quiet, not knowing what to say. She’d forgotten that he knew her too well, she couldn’t lie to him easily. 

What if she told him? She knew he wouldn’t judge her, and deep down, she was desperate for someone to understand her struggle. The burden was getting too heavy.

“You’re right.” A deep breath left her lungs. “I’ve been fighting my feelings for a long time.”

He wordlessly tugged at her hand for her to sit on the grass with him, and then waited for her to continue.

“I’m in love with someone, Jace. I didn’t want to, I didn’t ask for it, but I am. And she’s... never gonna feel the same way.”

Jason looked at her sadly. “It’s Annabeth, isn’t it?”

“H-How’d you know?”

“It may not be obvious to everyone, but I’ve seen the way you look at her.”

She let out a dry laugh, her shoulders loosening. Sharing wasn’t so bad after all. She certainly felt a lot better, as if the weight of the secret was slowly fading. “You’re the first person to know.”

“I understand how you feel, if that helps.” He sighed. “I’ve had a lot of time to analyze and go over stuff, and I realized I’m in love too.”

It immediately clicked in her mind. Piper hadn’t thought anything of it at the time, with the whole end of the world situation going on, but she had also seen the way Jason looked at him.

“It’s Percy.” She squeezed his hand. “Gods, look at us. We couldn’t be more foolish.”

He must’ve suffered a lot, just like her, knowing that his love wouldn’t be reciprocated. She ached with the thought of him being in pain.

“Ha. Maybe we should just move to a little town in Italy and live the rest of our lives in peace.”

“Yeah.” She couldn’t help but smile, even as her eyes burned with tears. “Let’s flee the country.”

Jason smiled too, pulling her into her chest, like many times before. It was the comfort she’d been seeking. “We’ll get through this together, Pipes. I know we can.”

“I hope so, Jace. I really hope so.”


	5. Chapter 5

** End of May  **

Piper walked down the stairs of the jet and through the tarmac, already feeling a heavy pressure on her chest. She had finished school and graduated, and it was finally time to go back to Camp Half-Blood.

Jason wasn’t with her. He decided to stay in Camp Jupiter for a while before joining her. It was a valid enough reason, but she knew he also wanted to delay seeing Percy. He was lucky to have that option.

She didn’t.

During the excruciatingly long past five months, she managed to at least not think about Annabeth Chase every second of the day. But no, she hadn’t moved on. How could she, when Annabeth sought her out every week, wanting to know how she was doing? When she sent her voice messages with that beautiful voice, which were replayed over and over again?

It felt like every god in the universe was mocking her.

The ride to camp was uneventful, as she imagined how the summer would go. She hadn’t even followed her own resolution to keep her distance from Annabeth, but she really had to. If not, she would probably end up with her heart more broken than it already was. After reuniting with her and catching up, she would do her best to keep her distance. First, she would enjoy seeing the object of her affection again.

She thought she was about to faint as the car parked on the farthest point it could go, and she saw a blonde with an orange shirt and shorts waiting a few feet away.

Was it too late to turn back? She didn’t know Annabeth would walk her to camp, she thought she would have that time to prepare herself. Of course, things never went the way she expected them to.

She climbed out of the backseat with her duffel bag and her skateboard, her heart hammering as Annabeth grinned from ear to ear and literally ran towards her.

“Hi.”

“Hi.”

Piper hugged her, arms wrapping tightly around her body. She leaned down a little bit to rest her head on the crook of her neck, and Annabeth’s familiar vanilla scent filled her nose, making her feel like everything was right in the world.

“Missed me, Annie?”

“Of course I did. But don’t be so full of yourself, McLean.”

“I won’t.” She pulled back. “I missed you too.”

“Serves you right. Now let’s be on our way.”

“Do you want me to give you a ride?” She held her skateboard up, trying not to laugh when Annabeth made a face. “I’ll piggyback you.”

“That’s not safe at all.”

“Come on, we have super strength. I’m not going to drop you.”

“Yes, but we don’t have super balance.” The blonde rolled her eyes. “We’re going to fall.”

“But...”

“No. Look, we’re not too far.”

It was true. She could see the entrance near, and they walked the rest of the way in silence. Inevitably, her gaze was drawn to Annabeth’s hand, and she thought about how much she wished to hold it. But that would only happen in her dreams.

As they finally arrived, Piper took a deep breath, a smile curving her lips. She’d missed the place, she’d missed her siblings. Even Drew.

“Welcome home.” Annabeth turned to her. “There’s something I want to show you. Do you want to leave your stuff in the cabin first?”

Piper noticed that wherever they passed, campers would stare at her like she was a celebrity. “Why are people looking at me like that?”

The daughter of Athena apparently had already been aware of it too, because she sighed. “It’s because they think you’re single and they want to woo you.”

_ Oh, interesting. _

She couldn’t help but smirk. “Well, they’re right. I am single.”

Annabeth hit her arm, her expression stern.

“Ouch! What was that for?”

“Just snapping you out of whatever ideas were forming in your head.”

A girl from the Apollo cabin waved at her, batting her eyelashes. She waved back, winking.

Maybe a distraction would help her move on from Annabeth, right? There were plenty of people who’d be willing to help. It wasn’t such a bad idea.

“Stop flirting, P—“

“Piper!” The blonde was interrupted by one of her own brothers. “I could take your stuff to the Aphrodite cabin, if you want.”

He was tall, with curly auburn hair and signature grey eyes. She had talked to him before, but she was having a hard time remembering his name.

“Nicholas, I think she’s fine.”

That was it! Nicholas.

“Actually, I wouldn’t mind your help.” His face brightened at her words. “Thank you so much, Nicholas.”

The boy took her things, hands lingering on her own. “Call me Nick.”

When he left with a spring on his step, Annabeth was fuming. “You’re unbelievable.”

“What?” She didn’t understand what had made her angry. “He offered to help, and I wanted to be with you and go wherever you’re taking me.”

Gods, she regretted the words as soon as they came out of her mouth. That was too revealing and embarrassing.

But it seemed to calm the blonde down, her features relaxing. “Alright, let’s go.”

Soon enough, she saw a building that hadn’t been there before, near the lake. Could that possibly be the gym they had talked about during Thanksgiving Break?

“Is that...”

“The gym. I designed it when I got home from visiting you, and then Iris Messaged Chiron to tell him. The Hephaestus kids were eager to work on it, and here we are. It’ll be ready in a few days, just in time for your birthday.”

Piper was speechless, marveled by Annabeth’s determination and vision. It was amazing. ”My birthday?”

“I included that room we talked about.” The girl beamed. “Consider it a birthday gift.”

Her mouth fell open with a gasp, her heart doing somersaults in her chest. So Annabeth had done it for her? It was so overwhelming that she wanted to kiss the daylights out of her, to show her how much it meant to her. And she loved, she loved,  she _loved_ her.

Alas, that was impossible.

“Wow, that’s...” She scrambled for words. “I don’t know what to say. Thank you so much.”

Ah, that feeling of her lungs being set on fire? It was back in full force.

“You’re welcome. It’s also payback for the three thousand dollar necklace you bought me.” Annabeth pulled it from under her shirt, showing it to her with a raised eyebrow.

“How do you know how much it cost?”

“Did you really think I’d be able to sleep at night without having that knowledge? Come on, we’re best friends.”

She chuckled half-heartedly. “Yeah, I should’ve known.”

Best friends. That was all.

She really needed to focus on someone new. Or several someones.

* * *

  
  


The next day, Piper woke up early, not being able to fall back asleep after having a dream involving a spin the bottle game and Annabeth Chase. She hurried to shower before the others came swarming to the bathroom, so that she could have some peace before facing the day.

Apparently, she spent too much time overthinking, because everyone was up and having breakfast by the time she finished getting ready. She walked to her table with her head held high and an amused smile on her face, knowing several heads had turned to look at her. She purposefully passed by the Athena table, quickly grabbing a blueberry muffin from Annabeth’s tray while she talked to one of her siblings.

She was already sitting by the time Annabeth noticed and flipped her off. She made a heart shape with her fingers and laughed, but someone tapped her shoulder, interrupting the action.

It was Rachel Elizabeth Dare, the pretty Oracle.

“Hello, Rachel. How are you?”

“I’m great!” The girl smiled brightly, making her emerald eyes shine. “May I sit here?”

“You most certainly may.”

“So how have you been? How’s life?”

“Everything’s good, I’m glad school’s finally over. What about you?”

“Same old. No prophecies to report, thankfully.” The redhead casually rested her hand near hers. “It’ll be fun to have you around.”

She knew where things were going, and she didn’t mind it at all.

“Yeah?” Her hand rested on top of Rachel’s.

“Yeah. In fact, I wanted to show you something on the cave, want to go?”

The thrill of anticipation rushed in her veins. “Lead the way.”

Rachel held her hand as they walked away, unnoticed by the others. The inside of the cave was dim-lighted, but it was enough for her to be able to see.

“Piper...” The redhead was getting closer. “I think you already know what’s going on.”

“I might have an idea.” She licked her lips, reaching out to push a strand of hair out of Rachel’s forehead.

“And what’re you going to do about it?”

That was it. She leaned down and hurriedly crashed her lips against the other girl’s, desperate to forget. Her eyes were shut so tightly that it almost hurt, as her fingers pulled on red hair and her tongue explored the Oracle’s mouth.

It felt good, it really did. But she was thinking about kissing someone else, pulling at someone else’s hair. She stopped trying to push those thoughts away, and instead indulged in the fantasy. A groan escaped her as she imagined that it was Annabeth pressing their bodies together, touching beneath her shirt.

She turned her head to try a different angle and was about to set the other girl down in one of the sofas when...

“Are you quite finished?”

She jumped at the sound of the absolutely livid voice, taking several steps away from Rachel and quickly pushed her shirt down.

“We have a head counselor meeting.” Annabeth looked between the two of them. “We can’t be late, Piper.”

The daughter of Athena left, probably to wait outside. Piper turned to the girl she’d been kissing moments later. “See you later?”

“Yeah.” Rachel didn’t miss the opportunity to give her a quick peck. “Have fun.”

She had been right, Annabeth was indeed waiting for her outside the cave. Her arms were crossed over her chest, her foot tapping on the floor. The blonde was mad again, obviously.

She had noticed that Annabeth got mad whenever she mentioned being in danger, and recently, because she’d let Nick help her. And now, she guessed, it was for kissing Rachel.

Piper, who prided herself on being able to read people easily, didn’t understand the reasoning behind Annabeth’s anger. Was she just looking out for her? Or was she just tired of her antics?

“So, why the sudden meeting?”

“There’s no meeting.”

“Then why—“

“Percy wanted to say hi to you.” Annabeth spoke fast. “So I came to get you.”

No mention of what she’d been doing before the interruption. Great, it would spare her the awkwardness.

“Oh, okay.” She acted nonchalant, when in reality her heart was begging to ask Annabeth why she was so bothered. “I’ll go see him.”

“You do know that the Oracle can’t be involved in any romantic relationships, right?”

“Of course I do.” Gods, there it was. The awkwardness. “We’re just having fun.”

“Fun.” Annabeth nodded, but it definitely wasn’t in agreement. “Okay, then. I just don’t want you to get hurt.”

Perhaps she wasn’t so out of her depth at reading Annabeth, the girl really was trying to look out for her. And yet, a part of her felt disappointed.

“You don’t have to worry. I won’t get hurt.”

The blonde looked like she wanted to say more, but decided against it, motioning with her hand for Piper to follow her. And she did, like the lovesick puppy she was.

“Piper!” Percy approached them, smiling.

She performed a secret handshake with him, one they’d created when they went on their mini-quest with Jason. “It’s good to see you, Perce.”

“You too. Did you bring your skateboard?”

“Of course I did, I’m ready to kick your ass.”

“We’ll see about that—“ Suddenly, he stopped, his face pale as he looked at something behind her.

“Hey there, Beauty Queen.”

The voice sent chills through her spine, an immense rage rising within her. She turned around with her fists already curled up, seeing a short boy with a white shirt and suspenders.

Leo Valdez.


	6. Chapter 6

“You son of a bitch!”

Piper’s fist flew and connected with Leo’s jaw, making fall to the ground. She marched towards him, ready to give him the beating of his life, but Percy’s arms wrapped around her, pulling her back.

“Let me go, Percy!” She thrashed against his hold.

“Trust me, Pipes, I want you to kick his ass too. But we should hear him out first.”

“But he’s a bastard!”

“Hey.” Annabeth stepped in front of her, occupying all of her vision. “Listen to me. Calm down, I’m sure he has a lot of explaining to do.”

She nodded, but she was still going to beat the hell out of him when he said whatever he wanted to say. Leo finally stood up, hand pressed against his jaw.

“That was harsh, Beauty Queen.”

“You don’t get to call me that.”

“Fine. But please, let me explain—“

“Explain?!” She had reached the last of her patience. “Explain what? That while I was mourning my little brother, he was off in a mission of his own, very much alive? That you couldn’t bother to tell me what you had planned? That all the tears I cried into Jason’s chest were in vain?”

“Piper...”

“And Jason...” Her stomach dropped at the memory of him being a wreck, agonizingly sobbing in her arms. “I could kill you for all the suffering you put Jason through.”

“I’m sorry.” Leo’s eyes had immense sadness in them. “I really am.”

“Yeah?” It was then that she realized her face was wet. “Me too.”

She ran away and into the woods, not bothering to look back. If she had, she would’ve noticed Annabeth was crying too, her gaze following Piper’s retreating form.

Her legs took her as far away as they could before she got tired, collapsing against a tree and breathing heavily. She closed her eyes, but her anger was already receding. She felt relieved that Leo was actually alive, that the message had been real. She wanted to forgive him, she really did, but Jason and her had spent months in pain. Not to mention how they traveled the world looking for him and eventually started losing hope. She needed time to come to terms with everything and sort herself out.

Hopefully, no one would go after her. She didn’t have the energy to talk to anyone, and especially not Annabeth. She didn’t know how much more heartbreak she could take before she finally shattered.

“My darling.”

A soft, gentle voice startled her, making her open her eyes and look up. It was the least person she expected to see.

Her mother, Aphrodite.

“Mom? What’re you doing here?”

The goddess offered Piper her hand, smiling. She took it and was instantly pulled into a hug. Wow. She hadn’t hugged her mom before, not that she remembered, but it was comforting and warm, like drinking hot chocolate while wrapped up in a blanket during winter.

“I’ve been watching you, my love. I couldn’t bear to see you in pain any longer.”

So apparently she was miserable enough to make her mom risk angering Zeus by breaking his rule of not intervening in demigods’ lives. That didn’t make her feel any better.

“Annabeth Chase does not deserve you.” Aphrodite continued, her voice turning cold. “I can’t believe she broke up with Percy Jackson and still dares not to be with you.”

What?

“Mom, what do you mean they broke up?”

“You didn’t know? They did, just this morning when he arrived. It was amicable and mutual though. And before you say anything, I didn’t eavesdrop. I’m just a divine being, I know things.”

“Oh.” She wondered why Annabeth hadn’t told her. Then again, they hadn’t had much time to talk with everything that happened in such a small amount of time.

“I wanted to curse her, but I assume you wouldn’t want that.”

“No, I wouldn’t.” She pulled back from the hug. “Mom, it’s okay. You didn’t have to come here to lift my spirits.”

“You’re my daughter, Piper.” Her mom placed a hand on her cheek. “My favorite child, but don’t tell anyone. Even though I have lived for eons, it still hurts to watch you suffer.”

Was it wrong to feel happy about the fact that over hundreds of children, she was the favorite?

“I have a proposition for you.”

That caught her off guard. “W-What is it?”

“You can become one of the gods of love, like me and your brothers. Then, there will be no more suffering. There’ll be plenty of adoration for you.”

Her eyes widened as Aphrodite’s words sunk in. She was being offered godhood. Eternal life, with no more heartache. As much as she hated to admit it, it sounded very appealing.

“But what about Zeus and the other Olympians? What will they say?”

The goddess scoffed, waving her hand. “All of them owe me so much that they can’t say a word against it.”

She bit down on her lip nervously. If she accepted, she would no longer be weighed down by the burden of unrequited love, would no longer be the sad girl who barely saw her father and used to go to extreme lengths to get his attention. But she didn’t know if she could leave her friends behind, and what was she supposed to tell her dad? How would he react?

How would Annabeth feel about it?

“You don’t have to decide now. I’ll give you until the end of August to make your choice.” Her mother kissed her forehead. “See you soon, my dear. And happy birthday in advance.”

Piper was left alone with a shocked expression on her face, swallowing thickly. She had a lot of thinking to do, and an impossible decision to make.

Happy birthday, indeed.

Sighing, she went back to camp, where people were lining up to punch Leo. Her lips quirked up a little at the sight, as the short boy waved at her to go over.

“You okay, Pipes?”

“Yes. I’m not sorry for what I said, though.”

“Ouch, not so hard!” One of his siblings had hit his arm. “Hey, I deserved it. I’m the one who’s sorry. I’ve been waiting for you to come back to tell you guys what happened.”

“Okay, then. Let’s hear it.”

With that, everyone gathered around them and Leo launched on a long story about searching for Ogygia to find Calypso and free her. He eventually did, and they’d been traveling the world ever since. She zoned him out halfway, so she didn’t hear about Calypso’s whereabouts. Her mind was racing with conflicted thoughts about the options she had. There were so many pros and so many cons that she had a hard time keeping up.

Her eyes continuously drifted towards Annabeth, who was sitting on a log beside Percy. The blonde girl caught her staring several times, but instead of smiling or something along those lines, she frowned and looked away.

Was Annabeth still angry? Or had she heard her conversation with Aphrodite?

Whatever it was, Annabeth’s indifference felt like a shot through Piper’s chest.

* * *

  
  


** June 3rd **

Piper had been staying in her cabin for the most part of every day, avoiding Annabeth at all costs. She was met with no resistance, because the girl didn’t seek her out. That was fine, because she needed time to think, time to prove to herself that she could get over the daughter of Athena without resorting to drastic measures.

But it was her birthday, and she couldn’t handle it anymore.

Everyone had congratulated her during breakfast, and she’d even gotten presents. Percy gave her neon blue wheels for her skateboard, and Leo had gotten her a record player he’d made himself, with an Ariana Grande vinyl. Her mom had sent her various outfits and perfume.

Those things had brought a smile on her face, and yet there was a knot on her throat that wouldn’t go away, because there had been no sight of Annabeth all day. She asked Percy about her, and he said that she wasn’t feeling well. That was weird.

It was almost 6 PM and Piper felt miserable, despite the Apollo cabin making a whole concert for her. Was Annabeth really not going to come out? The uncertainty was killing her.

Just when she was about to give up and go back to the cabin to wallow in her sorrow, she caught a flash of curly blonde hair moving past the trees. She followed, drinking the rest of the cheap beer on her cup (Leo had snuck it into camp).

“Annabeth!”

The alluded girl turned around, looking agitated, but didn’t say a word.

“Why have you been avoiding me?” She tried her hardest to keep her voice from breaking.

Annabeth was beside her in a second, grabbing her hand. Immediately, it seemed like the world had brightened. “Come with me.”

She was led into the new gym, but she barely had time to admire it, because Annabeth opened a door and dragged her down a staircase, stopping in front of yet another door.

“I’m sorry for not being there today, I had to finish this.” The door opened, revealing a large room. “Happy birthday, Piper.”

She stepped inside, mouth hanging open in surprise. The room had a desk with a chair, and even a tv, game console included. In the farthest wall, there was a large bed with black sheets.

“Annie, I’m...” She was in shock. Despite the fact that she’d already known, she couldn’t believe Annabeth had gone through such great lengths. “I don’t know why you would waste so much time in something that I suggested, but thank you.”

“It wasn’t a waste of my time. You deserve it.”

Piper turned to face Annabeth again, but it felt like they were a thousand miles away. Grey eyes kept staring at her in a way that had her frozen on the spot, feeling like her heart was being squeezed by an invisible fist.

“Annabeth... my mom made me an offer.” She wanted to be truthful, because she was at the brink of making the choice that would change her life forever.

“What was it?”

“She offered to make me a goddess of love.”

All color drained from Annabeth’s face. “Did you say yes?”

“No. I have to give her an answer before the end of August.”

“Is that what you want?”

“I don’t know. I wanted...” Her cheeks flushed. “I wanted to know what you thought.”

“Can I be honest?”

That question made her fear. One word from the love of her life could change everything. “Yes, of course.”

Her eyes were watery. “I don’t know what I would do without you, Piper.”

“Then why have you been avoiding me?” She echoed her question from earlier, feeling weak.

“You kissed Dare.”

“I... I did.” Hadn’t they already gone over that? “I told you I wouldn’t get hurt. But I won’t do it again, if you’re so worried.”

“Gods.” Annabeth huffed, closing her eyes for a second. “You can be very ignorant sometimes, you know that?”

She was lost, completely lost. Her heart raced as she stepped closer to the other girl. “Why are you so mad?”

Annabeth’s gaze dropped to her lips, making the world stop spinning. She licked them in anticipation, a pool of heat starting on her chest and going lower when she saw there was only a thin ring of grey in the blonde’s eyes.

“Don’t you know, Piper?”

Before she could even ask what the hell she was talking about, Annabeth’s hand grabbed the back of her neck, pressing their lips together. Piper immediately reacted, inhaling sharply through her nose before pushing Annabeth all the way against the wall and holding her by the waist. She felt like she was exploding, her mind blank except for the bright neon sign that spelled  _ Annabeth Chase is kissing you. _

She couldn’t get enough of her coffee flavored lips, and Annabeth seemed to read her thoughts, because she sucked Piper’s bottom lip with her teeth and pulled slightly.

It drove her insane.

She pulled away for a moment to breathe, staring at Annabeth’s flushed face and dark eyes. She couldn’t believe it. What if it was just a dream? Or worse, an illusion?

“Annie.” Her voice came out hoarse. “I have always been yours.”

A whine left Annabeth’s mouth, and she kissed her again, even more passionately than before. Her legs hooked around her waist, making Piper see fireworks behind her eyelids as the other girl’s hips buckled against her own. Her mouth trailed down Annabeth’s jaw, while the blonde’s hands roamed beneath her shirt. A week ago, she would’ve laughed bitterly if someone told her Annabeth reciprocated her feelings. But it was true, and she was going to cherish it as much as she could.

“I love you.” Piper didn’t care if it was too fast, or if Annabeth wouldn’t say it back. She couldn’t hold those words in any longer. “I love you more than all the days and nights, deeper than the oceans and the skies.”

A tear fell from Annabeth’s eye as she slowly brushed her lips against hers. All those months of agony had come to an end, finally.

“Don’t leave me, Piper.” The blonde whispered against her. “Please.”

“I won’t. I will never leave you.”

She kissed Annabeth’s forehead, followed by her nose and both of her cheeks. Her mouth found Annabeth’s pulse point, giving it a slight bite. The blonde made a little noise from the back of her throat, her nails digging into Piper’s ribs.

“Fuck.”

She lifted her head from Annabeth’s neck, looking at her face again. It was a sight to behold, to see her flustered and disheveled. Gods, her beauty was unparalleled. In her eyes, there was nothing in the universe that could compare to Annabeth Chase.

Piper’s fingers came up to trace her neck and collarbone with a feathery touch as she carried the girl to the bed and set her down. They kissed again, and she rolled to the side to lay beside her love, embracing her.

Annabeth rubbed their noses together, smiling in a way she’d never seen before. “Think we could stay here forever?”

“I don’t know about that.” She whispered back. “But there is nowhere else I’d rather be, and I’ll enjoy it for as long as I can.”


	7. Chapter 7

Piper opened her eyes to the sight of the most beautiful girl in the world staring at her. Relief flooded her as she realized it hadn’t been a dream.

“Hey there, sleepyhead.” Annabeth murmured softly.

“Hey there, creep.”

“I’m not a creep, I just think you’re the cutest and I couldn’t stop myself from admiring you.”

She grinned, a blush spreading across her cheeks. Who would’ve thought Annabeth had such smooth lines? 

Her hand found the blonde’s, bringing it up to her lips and kissing her knuckles. “I’m flattered, Miss Chase.”

The girl chuckled. “Can I confess something?”

“Yes, anything.”

“I wanted you to kiss me when we were at the beach.”

She remembered that moment, she’d never forget it. Back then, she thought Annabeth didn’t feel anything for her, but she had been so wrong. 

“And I almost did... I wanted to, so badly that it hurt. But you were in a relationship back then.” She stared as Annabeth bit her lower lip. “Which, by the way, you didn’t tell me it was over. If I hadn’t found out from my mom we wouldn’t be in this situation right now.”

“I meant to tell you, I really did. But things got a bit hectic.”

“It’s okay, sweetheart.”

The blonde snuggled closer to her, pressing her nose against Piper’s cheek. “I’ve liked you for a very long time, you know? I just didn’t want to accept my feelings. I wish I had realized sooner.”

“Well, I’ve liked you for a very long time too.”

“Since when?”

“I think that from the moment I saw you. You were the most gorgeous girl I’d ever seen, and even though you were kind of cold, I wanted nothing more than to be around you. That’s not when I realized, though. It happened after Sparta.”

“Oh. I felt so many things back then.” Annabeth took a deep breath. “But I brushed it off because I thought it was the fear. Then I thought about you a lot. And when I arrived at your house and saw you, it felt like finally getting oxygen, like I had been drowning and I was saved just by looking at you. That’s when I knew I couldn’t deny that I liked you any longer.”

Her heart jumped at the knowledge that Annabeth had liked her for a long time, too. She almost wanted to cry.

“Annie...”  _ I love you _ was what she wanted to say, but they were no longer clouded by desire, like they had been when she said it before. It wouldn’t be so easy to ignore now, and she didn’t want to scare her away. “You don’t know how happy you’ve made me.”

Annabeth kissed her, and it gave her as much of a rush as the first time it happened. She wanted to stay frozen in time, never bothered by anything else.

Speaking of time...

“Annabeth.” She reluctantly broke the kiss. “What time is it?”

“Don’t freak out, it’s four in the morning.”

“How’d you know?” The blonde pointed behind her, and she turned around to see a nightstand with an alarm clock. “Oh, thank the gods. I don’t think I would’ve been able to handle a walk of shame.”

“We should leave now, so that nobody thinks we spent the whole night away.”

“I don’t want to, but okay.” Piper sighed, getting up and dragging Annabeth with her. “Five more minutes here wouldn’t hurt, right?”

“They certainly wouldn’t.”

She leaned forward and joined their lips together, smiling. She loved how Annabeth seemed to melt into it, her hand cupping Piper’s cheek.

“Gods, I can’t believe you’re so good at everything.” Annabeth chuckled. “Even at kissing.”

“Is that so?” She raised an eyebrow, smirking. “You haven’t even seen the full extent of my abilities yet.”

“You’re so full of yourself.” The girl rolled her eyes. “I’m not complimenting you again.”

“Sorry.” She wrapped her arms around the blonde’s waist. “I was thinking... maybe we should keep this, us, a secret for a while.”

She wasn’t ashamed, on the contrary, she wished to shout it from the rooftops. But it would be a little bit insensitive to act all lovey-dovey in front of Percy, since they had just broken up a day ago. He was her friend, and she didn’t want him to feel like she stole his girlfriend (although that was kind of exactly what she did).

Annabeth frowned. “Why?”

“Because of Percy. Don’t you think it’d hurt him?”

“Percy’s my best friend, Piper. He’d be happy for me, and he already knows I like you.”

“Wait, he does?”

“Yes.”

That was a relief, but it was best to wait. “But still... it would be too soon.”

“Fine, you’re right. We’ll keep it between us for a while.” Her lips formed a pout. “But I better not see you flirting back with any of your suitors, much less Rachel Dare. And you still have to make up for kissing her.”

“Don’t worry,  _ ma petite chouette _ _._ You’re the only one who has all of my attention.”

“Alright, then.” The pout changed into a smile. “Let’s go.”

* * *

The rest of the night went excruciatingly slow. They successfully snuck back into their cabins, but Piper didn’t sleep again. Her mind replayed what happened over and over again, as she stared at the ceiling with a goofy grin on her face.

During breakfast, Annabeth stole her yogurt and went back to her table. Then their cabins had combat training together, so obviously, as head counselors they had to lead the lesson. Unfortunately for her, the blonde looked way too hot with her tank top, showing off her defined muscles. She was teasing her, she knew it. 

Annabeth showed a punch move that made her arm flex, and then turned to wink at her.

Wow. Two could play at that game.

She challenged her brother Mitchell to a fight, with the excuse that she wanted to see if he was learning. She took off her shirt, leaving her with a sports bra and gym shorts. The daughter of Athena’s eyes widened, but was quick to look away.

Piper smirked, and didn’t glance at her again as she sparred with Mitchell. After the session was over and the campers were dismissed, Annabeth walked over to her.

“You’re such a tease.” Her jaw was tense.

“You started it, Annie.” She kissed her cheek. “I have to go, it’s cleaning day. See you soon.”

She walked away, trying not to laugh when Annabeth called after her.

“Wait, you— ugh. You’re insufferable sometimes.”

“And yet, you love that about me.”

“I do.” The girl’s fingers went up to the spot where she had kissed her, making Piper’s stomach flutter. “Bye, Pipes.”

After that, her day was consumed by thoughts of Annabeth Chase, even as she did her chores and then went skateboarding with Percy. A part of her hated that she was keeping a secret from him, but she tried to reassure herself with the fact that he would know soon.

She was showing him a new trick she’d learned when Will Solace ran towards them. 

“Piper! Chiron wants to see you.” Will gasped for air. “Now.”

Piper and Percy looked at each other and shrugged. Why would Chiron want to see her?

“Perce, you don’t think I did anything bad, right?”

“I don’t think so. Unless you’ve been secretly leaving camp without his permission. That’d be bad.”

“Well, I haven’t.”

“Then it probably isn’t anything serious. Tell me what he said later.”

She sure hoped so. When she got to the Big House, Annabeth was already there, looking pissed off. Of course, the grey eyed girl was always the first to know when something was up.

“Hello, Piper.” Chiron greeted her.

“Hey. Will said you wanted to talk to me?” She kept her voice neutral, but her palms were sweating, despite knowing she hadn’t done anything.

“Yes. Aphrodite’s dove-drawn chariot has been stolen, and it has unique powers, not to mention it can soar through the sky. Whoever has it can cause chaos, and both your mother and Zeus are furious.”

Great, she already knew where the conversation was going. Another quest.

“Okay, then. Who am I going with?” She knew she could probably choose, but it felt like the mission was very specific.

“You will go with Jason Grace and Leo Valdez.”

“I still don’t understand why I can’t go.” Annabeth drew the attention towards her. 

Oh, so that was the reason behind her anger.

“You’re not required for this quest, Annabeth.” Chiron sounded tired, like he’d already said it a thousand times.

“But—“

The centaur ignored the protests. “Piper, you’ll leave tomorrow morning with Leo to pick up Jason.”

“Okay.”

“Godspeed.” Chiron nodded solemnly and went back into his office.

“Piper, can we talk?” The hardness of Annabeth’s tone had been replaced by worry.

“Yes, of course.”

Annabeth held her hand and led her to the gym, practically running. She knew the blonde would be worried, but she’d let her talk through her feelings first before reassuring her.

When they reached the secret room and closed the door behind them, Annabeth finally spoke again.

“I wanted to go with you. I don’t want you to be alone.”

“I won’t be alone, Annie.” She squeezed her hand. “I’ll be with the boys, and we’ll protect each other like we always have. It’s okay.”

“But I won’t be there to make sure it’s actually ‘okay’.”

“Then I’ll try my hardest to make it quick, so I’ll be back before you know it.”

Annabeth didn’t look so convinced, but she nodded and pressed their foreheads together. “Remember the promise we made to each other?”

“To stay alive no matter what? I do, and I intend to keep it.”

“You better.”

She gave her a chaste kiss, that turned not-so-chaste when the blonde explored Piper’s mouth with her tongue, changing it into a full make out session. Not that she was complaining.

“Piper, are you my girlfriend?” Annabeth was sitting on her lap, looking down at her.

“Well, I hope so. I can ask even you right now. Would you please do me the honor of being my girlfriend?”

The daughter of Athena giggled. “Yes, of course.”

“Yes!” She pumped her fist into the air, making Annabeth laugh harder. “Not that I doubted your answer, though.”

The happiness she felt was more than enough to stop her from thinking about the quest and live in the moment with her girlfriend.

* * *

Piper soared through the sky with Leo, riding Festus as they made their way to California. 

Saying goodbye to Annabeth had been hard, even harder than when the blonde left her house. She almost didn’t want to let go, but eventually did after promising that she’d be back soon.

“So, Beauty Queen.” Leo yelled so that she would hear him over the wind. “When will you finally ask Annabeth out?”

She choked on air, eyes going wide. “W-What?”

“Please, I know you’re head over heels for her. I’ve caught you giving her moon eyes more times than I can count.”

“I don’t—“ She almost denied it, but what was the use? “Oh, just shut up.”

“She gives you moon eyes too, you know? It’s endearing.”

Her cheeks flushed at the thought of Annabeth looking at her adoringly. She still couldn’t believe it wasn’t all a dream. “Anyway, we should stop for food.”

“What? We took off like two hours ago.”

“Yeah, and I’m hungry. Don’t tell me you aren’t.”

“You got me. Let’s fly down then.”

It turned out that they were in Kansas (Leo didn’t miss the opportunity to make a joke about the Wizard of Oz). They decided to eat in a diner, as quickly as they could to avoid any monsters.

Piper went to the bathroom and stared at the carefully sheathed Katopris, debating whether to look at it or not. She couldn’t control what it showed her, but still, it would be nice to not go in blind to the search. On the other hand, what if it showed her something awful? Then she’d have to go back to the table and wait for the other shoe to drop.

She squeezed her eyes shut for a second, taking a deep breath. Slowly, her trembling fingers unsheathed the dagger and stared.

Nothing.

But then... an evil face, a face she knew well. It made her stomach drop.

Medea.


	8. Chapter 8

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> i hate writing fighting sequences so... sorry in advance for how rushed and messy it is. i just wanted to get it over with 😭

Piper eventually went back to the table, her head spinning. Medea had to be the one who stole her mother’s chariot, to use it as bait. The sorceress surely hadn’t forgotten their last encounter, and wanted revenge. A revenge that would end with death, certainly. She would make sure it was Medea’s.

She decided to not mention anything to Leo, at least not until they got to Jason. She knew they would both go on a rant about what they should do and how they wouldn’t let Piper do anything alone, so it was best to deal with a headache once instead of two at different times.

They ate as fast as they could and continued their journey, thankfully without any inconvenience. While she looked out at the infinity of the sky in front of her, she wondered how Annabeth was doing. She already missed her girlfriend terribly. As soon as they took a moment to sit down, she would Iris Message her.

“Where’s Jason waiting for us?” Leo spoke over his shoulder. “We’re about to arrive.”

“At the edge of the hills.”

She had to admit that she was a little bit anxious, because there was no clue about where to start looking. She hoped Jason would have some useful information once she revealed what she’d seen.

Before long, they were descending towards a tall figure with a purple shirt.

“Hey!” Jason waved at them, smiling as they climbed down from Festus. When Leo approached him, he gave him a bone-crushing hug.

“My ribs, man. Can’t breathe.”

“Oh, sorry.”

“So you’re not mad?”

“Of course not. I’m just glad you’re okay.”

“Well, would you look at that, Piper.” Leo raised his eyebrows at her.

“Still not sorry.”

“What?” Jason looked like a lost puppy as he opened his arms to hug her. 

“Beauty Queen here wanted to beat me to a pulp. She almost did, by the way.”

“You’re so dramatic, Valdez.” She rolled her eyes, arms still wrapped around Jason’s torso. “I missed you, Sparky.”

“Same, Pipes.” He left a kiss on her temple. “So any ideas about what we should do?”

“Yeah, about that...” She glanced at both of them before continuing. “When we were at the diner I unsheathed Katopris. And I saw Medea.”

“Piper! Why didn’t you tell me earlier?”

“Medea? Do you think she’s the one who stole the chariot?”

“Guys, don’t speak at the same time.” She let go of Jason to rub at her forehead. “I didn’t tell you before, Leo, because I wanted you both to hear it at the same time. And yeah, I think she’s the one who stole the chariot. Maybe she wanted to lure me out.”

“She must want revenge from when you left her for dead.”

“Then I’ll make sure she stays dead this time.” With a sigh, she sat on a nearby rock. “We have no leads on where to begin, though.”

“Maybe you should try looking at Katopris again.” Leo suggested.

“It  _ has  _ been oddly cooperative, but I don’t know if it’ll work again.” Piper pulled out the dagger. “Let’s see.”

At first, nothing appeared. Slowly, an image flickered. She couldn’t quite focus on what it was, but it looked like large concrete walls. Then, the image changed to an aerial view of a maze.

“Um, do any of you guys know a maze? That’s what the blade showed me.”

“It’s the Labyrinth. Daedalus’ Labyrinth.” Jason’s face went pale, eyes wide with shock. “Piper, I don’t think it’s a good idea to go there.”

That made her frown. It wasn’t like Jason to back down from a fight. “Why not?”

“It just isn’t.” He clenched his jaw, but the concern in his eyes was evident. Something was going on, and she had to know exactly what.

“Jason Grace, you’re going to tell me what you know right now.” The edge in her voice left no room for argument, and even though she hadn’t used charmspeak, she could see the Roman demigod’s resolve crumble.

“Leo, can I talk to Piper for a few seconds?”

The alluded looked at them like they’d grown a third arm, but nodded. “Alright, I’ll check if Festus needs to get anything fixed.”

As soon as Leo was several steps away, Jason took a deep breath. “I was sent on a mission to explore the maze a few days ago.”

“What happened, then?”

“I received a prophecy while I was there.” He moved to sit beside her grabbing her hand. “About the two of us.”

Piper already felt dread settling on every fiber of her body, because it couldn’t be anything good if her friend was so hesitant to say it. “Jace, just tell me what it is.”

“When we go to the labyrinth together, one of us will die.”

She almost couldn’t process what he had just said. It was a prophecy. Which meant that there was no backing out, it would definitely happen.

A fucking prophecy.

“Jason, we  will  find a loophole. Nothing will happen to either of us.” She squeezed his hand. “I’m sure of it.”

“That’s unlikely, Pipes. But yeah, I hope we find a loophole, too.” 

“You know I love you, right?” She gave him a halfhearted smile.

“I know. I love you too.”

“Let’s cheer up and go to Leo before he comes back and asks what’s taking so long. And then maybe we can talk about how things are going with Percy.”

Jason chuckled. “Only if we also talk about how things are going with Annabeth.”

“Oh, if only you knew.”

As she looked at him, she promised herself to keep him safe. She would protect Jason Grace until her last breath.

After reassuring Leo that everything was okay, they decided to rest for a moment before heading to the labyrinth. Piper wouldn’t waste the opportunity to talk to her girlfriend. She missed her so much that it was driving her crazy.

“Oh Iris, goddess of the Rainbow, please accept my offering. Show me Annabeth Chase.”

After saying the magic words, the image of the most beautiful girl appeared in front of her. Annabeth had a grin on her face, eyes shining.

“Oh, hello there, Miss McLean.”

“Hello there, Miss Chase.” The pure joy she felt almost made her squeal. “How are you doing? How are things back at camp?”

“I’m good. Everything’s great here, we’re going to play capture the flag and then we’ll turn in for the night. What about you?”

“I’m fine.” Her own grin faltered a little. “We have a lead so we’re about to go.”

She hated herself for lying to Annabeth, but she couldn’t worry her.

“That’s great! Maybe you’ll be back soon.”

“Yes.” She chuckled. “I’ll do my best to be back before you can miss me too much.”

“Alright. But I already miss you a lot, so hurry.” The blonde winked.

“I miss you too,  _ma petite chouette.”_

Annabeth blushed, smiling softly. “You haven’t told me what that means.”

“You’re the smartest girl I know, Annie. I’m sure you’d love the thrill of figuring it out on your own.”

“You know me so well.”

Before Piper could reply, Jason waved at her. It was time to go.

“I have to go.” Gods, she already felt her chest ache. “Goodbye, beautiful.”

“Be safe, okay?” Annabeth blew her a kiss. “Bye, babe.”

“I will be.”

With that, Annabeth disappeared, and she wiped a single tear from her cheek before returning to her friends.

* * *

“Okay, we’re here, so let’s do this.” Jason had led them to the entrance of the maze, and Piper stood before it, hands trembling a little. “Jason, what if you stay here?”

“What? Of course not. I’m going with you.”

“Jason—“

“We’ll have to be careful and watch each other’s backs. It will be okay.”

She stared at him long and hard, but knew he wouldn’t back down. They were going to stand together against all odds. “Fine.”

“I feel so left out.” Leo rolled his eyes.

“Forgive us, baby brother.” She slung her arm around his shoulders.

“Don’t call me baby.” A hint of a smile appeared on his lips. “Let’s do this thing.”

She took a deep breath and stepped forward, blood rushing in her ears. Already, her brain was forming ideas on how to keep Jason, and herself, alive. She’d made a promise to Annabeth, and she really didn’t want to break it. The thought of the daughter of Athena suffering made her heart break. But if it came down to it... she just hoped Annabeth would forgive her.

“Piper McLean.” Medea’s voice boomed through the walls, making her jump. “You shouldn’t have come here.”

“Oh, really? As if you didn’t steal the chariot to lure me out.”

“Hm, that much is true.” There was amusement in her tone. “You just walked right into your demise. And whatever shall I do with those friends of yours?”

Anger flared within her. She looked around, trying to pinpoint where the voice was coming from. “Leave them out of this. This is between the two of us, isn’t it? You want revenge.”

“I do. But this is so much bigger than you, Piper McLean. Demigods as you know them are coming to an end.”

“I challenge you to a duel.” Her eyes locked with Jason’s, whose sword clattered as it hit the ground. “Just you and me.”

“Challenge accepted.” Medea laughed. “Come find me, daughter of Aphrodite, and face death.”

Suddenly, a path cleared before them, but before she could keep walking, Leo stopped her with a hand on her arm.

“What the hell, Piper?!”

“You said nothing would happen to either of us.”

“And I stand by it. I’m gonna win this thing.” She hoped she appeared strong. “We’re going to be just fine, Jace.”

The boys pulled her into a hug, and Piper tried her hardest to hold back tears.

“You guys are everything to me.” She sniffled. “Stay back, okay? When it’s done, we get the hell out of here and eat ice cream.”

“I’ll jump in if anything goes wrong, though.” Jason spoke with a determined tone.

“Alright, then.”

They moved forward, nerves palpable in the air. She couldn’t lose. No, she  wouldn’t lose. It wasn’t like she’d come unprepared, either. She’d secretly soaked the tip of her dagger in a lethal poison before leaving camp.

By the time they got to Medea, she already seemed tired of waiting. There were no minions or backup in sight, just her and the chariot near.

Piper gripped Katopris tightly. “Here I am, Medea. Are you going to back down?”

“Back down? From a fight against a low-life halfblood?” The sorceress smirked. “You must think you’re good.”

“I don’t think I’m good.” She stepped forward. “I know I am.”

Instead of replying, Medea manipulated the winds and knocked Piper off her feet. Off to a good start, right?

She just had to get close enough to stab her.

Getting up, she analyzed her surroundings quickly, before Medea could launch another attack. She could easily ask Jason, who was keeping his promise to stay behind, to give her a lift. But that would imply putting him in danger, so it wasn’t an option. She couldn’t risk throwing the dagger, either. She’d never really practiced her aim.

What Piper had practiced, though, was her use of whatever was available to her advantage. So before she could be attacked by another gust of wind, she ran to the nearest wall and used it to catapult herself through the air, Katopris aimed directly to Medea’s chest.

She could see a flicker of fear on the sorceress’ eyes, but before she could strike, wind held her in place, as if she were trapped by an invisible giant fist.

“Did you really think it’d be that easy? I can see your mind, Piper McLean. Behind all that arrogance, behind all the heroics, there’s the self-hatred that will never go away. You don’t want your friends to die, and you wouldn’t mind sacrificing for them. You think you deserve it, don’t you?”

“Shut the fuck up.” She clenched her teeth, the wind making her unable to look back at her friends.

Apparently, they had tried to help her, because next thing she knew, they were trapped beside her.

“You’re all going to die here. It’s just too bad that you won’t get to see how the world will change.”

Medea then muttered something under her breath, which she couldn’t hear, but she did catch the word  _ Helios. _

Oh, shit.

Fire started surrounding them at an incredible speed, the flames just getting taller and taller. That mustn’t have been exactly what Medea had planned, because her eyes widened, and she let go of the grip on them.

“Jason, Leo, get the chariot and fly!”

“What about you?”

“I’ll be quick! I’ll signal you to come get me.” They stayed rooted in place, so Piper would have to ask for forgiveness later. “Do as I said! Now!”

Automatically, the boys obeyed. It’d only taken a split second to talk, and yet the fire was even closer. She could already feel the scorching heat.

Unfortunately for her, Medea was about to get away. She started running faster than she ever had in her life, sending out a prayer to Hermes to help her out. The flames were about to touch her back, but she kept running, certain she was about to reach her opponent.

Hermes must’ve been listening, because she succeeded. Medea was so busy getting away that she barely noticed Piper coming up behind her, arm raised up to finally strike.

“Goodbye, bitch.”

She had to admit that the look of pure rage on Medea’s face as she buried Katopris on her heart was very satisfying. But before she could bask in that feeling, Medea had one last trick: a weak wind was enough to push her into the fire.

Pain.

Pain.

Pain.

It was so unbearable that she could only see white, feeling how her skin was being burned off. She heard Jason and Leo yelling, but she knew she would die. It was over for her. The pain made her lightheaded, and she desperately wished she could just pass out already.

She let her body go limp, falling to the burning ground.

As Piper blacked out, she could’ve sworn she saw teary grey eyes flashing before her.


	9. Chapter 9

** Annabeth **

  
_For a moment, her eyes could only see fire. But then, as Annabeth’s brain caught up, she realized she was in a place she knew well._

_The Labyrinth._

_And there was Piper, running after a woman, with the fire spreading behind her. It was almost touching her. She saw her lips move, murmuring something, and immediately, the girl seemed to gain speed. Piper came up behind the woman, said something with a smirk and stabbed her in the heart with Katopris._

_But then... Piper was pushed into the flames._

_ “Piper! No, Piper!” They were consuming her, while Annabeth couldn’t do anything except watch. Somehow, Jason was diving and grabbing Piper’s burned body without being touched by the fire. It had been split seconds, but it had felt like eternity. _

_ “Piper...” She saw her unconscious (dead?) as Jason carried her and they flew away with Leo on the chariot they’d been sent to retrieve. “No...” _

_Then, her eyes flew open._

She was out of the cabin in a flash, not caring that she was barefoot and her hair looked like a bird’s nest. She ran to Percy’s cabin, knocking on the door without even noticing that the sky was still dark.

“Percy!” Her attempt at yelling came out weak. “Percy, please... open the damn door!”

After a few seconds of only hearing crickets and her heart pounding, the door opened.

“Hey, why are you—“ The words died in his throat when he saw her face. “Annabeth, what happened? Come with me.”

Percy pulled her inside and made her sit on the bed, but she hadn’t even finished processing her dream. What the hell had just happened?

_Piper being consumed by flames. Piper burning. Piper losing consciousness._

Without any warning, tears streamed down her cheeks like waterfalls, a gut-wrenching cry leaving her lips.

“Oh, Gods.” Percy put his hand on hers carefully, as if to not upset her further. “You’re worrying me. Do you want me to call Chiron?”

She tried to regulate her breathing and stop her sobs long enough to talk, but couldn’t. “N-no.”

“Okay.” He squeezed her hand. “Just tell me when you’re ready.”

Annabeth  _ was  _ ready, they needed to do something. She had half a mind to leave camp and find Piper, but obviously no one would let her.

“I-It’s...” She took a deep breath. “It’s Piper, Percy. She might be... I— I don’t know.”

The word ‘dead’ hung in the air between them, even if she couldn’t bring herself to say out loud.

That couldn’t be true, Piper had to be alive.

“How do you know?”

“I saw her in a dream. She was burning, and then Jason saved her.”

His eyebrows shot up. “Is he okay?”

“Yes, he is.”

“Maybe it was just a nightmare.” Percy tried to reassure her, but the barely contained tears in his eyes did the opposite.

“We have to do something.” She stood up quickly, almost giving herself whiplash. “I can’t just stay here and wait for news or anything. I have to go... I have to save her. I’m—“

“Annabeth.” He grabbed her shoulders, making her look into his eyes. “We can’t go out like that, we don’t even know where they are. I’m sure Jason and Leo will send a message whenever they can.”

“But I—“ She gasped for air, feeling dizzy. “Percy, she can’t be... I have to be with her.”

He enveloped her in a hug, rocking her back and forth lightly. “We’ll get news soon, okay? Everything’s going to be fine.”

Not finding any other words to say, she let Percy hug her as her gaze blankly settled settled on the wall behind him. How could she have let her go alone? She should’ve pushed harder to go, should’ve been there to protect her. Piper had told her she would be safe, so Annabeth trusted her, but then...

If Piper was gone, she was scared as hell of the person she would become. She could already feel it, the rage and resentment towards the gods for letting so many people she loved die. The daughter of Aphrodite was as essential to her as breathing, she couldn’t imagine a world without her. She did know one thing, though: that world would be up in flames.

Before she could get carried away by anger, a voice made her jump from and snap her head up from Percy’s chest.

“Percy! Percy!”

Jason looked distressed as he Iris Messaged them, his face dirty and eyes bloodshot. Th only thing she could see behind him were clouds.

“Jason, what’s going on?” Percy was the one to ask, since Annabeth didn’t trust her own voice. “Annabeth had a dream about Piper, is she okay?”

“She’s not.” Her stomach dropped a thousand stories down. “Her— her heart stopped, but I restarted it. Now her pulse is very weak and her breathing is shallow, but we’re about to arrive at camp.”

“Okay, I’ll go to Chiron and—“

She had already bolted out of the cabin before she could hear the rest of the sentence, but instead of running to the Big House, she headed straight to the Apollo cabin.

“Will!” Her fist pounded on wood. “Will Solace! Will!”

She probably looked like a maniac, and also felt like one. She had to keep moving, couldn’t stop. A few seconds later, Will came out, eyes squinted and hair disheveled.

“Annabeth? What’s going on?”

“Piperisabouttoarrivewithawfulburns.”

Will stared at her blankly, trying to decipher her rushed words, until it clicked.

“Oh!” He rubbed at his eyes. “Then I’ll go prepare the infirmary. Bring her straight to me.”

He took off, leaving her to look around frantically. What was she supposed to do? Why hadn’t they arrived?

Her eyes landed on Chiron, who was coming out of the Big House with Percy behind him. Relieved at having a new target instead of having to deal with her thoughts, she all but stomped towards them, ready to attack.

“I told you to let me go with her!”

“Annabeth—“

She didn’t care for explanations or excuses. “How could you?! I could’ve helped her! I swear on the river Styx that if she dies I will not—“

“Annabeth! Look!”

Her heart sank as she saw a flying chariot landing near them, Jason jumping out with Piper on his arms.

She thought she would faint.

Her beautiful Piper’s body was charred up to her neck, face intact. The girl looked so... weak, like all the light had been snuffed out of her. Annabeth felt like her entire sense of being was shattered.

Jason practically flew past them and towards the infirmary, but she didn’t have adrenaline rushing through her veins anymore. She stayed glued to the spot, trembling with fear.

“Hey.” Leo looked as ill as she probably did. “Let’s follow them.”

“Leo... how—?”

“I didn’t even know until... after. Jason heard a prophecy that said one of them would die. Piper challenged Medea to a duel, alone, so that Jason wouldn’t be in danger. That woman still planned to burn the place down and us with it, though.”

She still had so many questions, but she got stuck with the thought that Piper had willingly walked to her death, even after she promised she wouldn’t.

Without a warning, Annabeth started crying again, shaking with sobs as she walked. Leo looked frightened, or like he might’ve started crying too, but instead tugged her arm and dragged her into the infirmary.

“There’s not much we can do.” Will’s voice was heavy with emotion. “It’s really bad. Her body will give out if...”

If we don’t find a solution  went unsaid, but she refused to believe that. Logically, she knew it wasn’t possible to save her. But for once, she didn’t care about logic.

What could she do?

A flash of light illuminated the room, and when it dissipated, the goddess Aphrodite stood with them, in her dazzling designer clothes.

“Allow me.”

“Aphrodite?” It was Percy who broke through the shocked silence. “How? Aren’t you the goddess of love?”

“And I am also the oldest Olympian, Percy Jackson.” The goddess approached the bed where Piper had been placed. “I have powers beyond love, and I sure can use them to heal my darling daughter.”

They all just stared as Aphrodite caressed Piper’s cheek, and she was sure she heard Jason make a pained noise from the corner of the room. “You’re so brave, my child. So strong.”

Aphrodite’s hands hovered above her daughter’s body, a golden glow emanating from them. When it disappeared, Piper looked exactly the same as she had before leaving camp.

She could finally breathe again.

“She probably won’t wake up now, her brain has to recover from the physical strain.” Will inserted an IV through Piper’s arm, probably for hydration. “It could take a long time.”

Any relief she had felt vanished out of thin air. How long would that be? And how long could she keep going without looking into Piper’s adoring eyes?

Jason stormed out of the room, closing the door behind him with a bang. Thunder rumbled distantly in the sky.

“I’ll go after him.” Leo and Percy spoke at the same time, and the son of Poseidon’s face fell. “Okay, you go after him. I’ll just wait outside until he calms down.”

They left, leaving her alone with Aphrodite. Will was in the farthest part of the infirmary.

“I’ll come back to see her when she wakes up.” The goddess looked at her with an appraising look. “You love my daughter, don’t you?”

“I—“ Her cheeks felt insanely hot. “I do.”

Annabeth had never admitted it out loud, but of course she did. She loved Piper so intensely that she feared that love might drown her.

“That’s good to hear.” A smile that looked more threatening than friendly formed on her godly face. “If you so much as make her feel sad again, you’ll regret it for the rest of eternity.”

She swallowed thickly, knowing the words were true. Aphrodite was well known for her curses. She wished her mom were protective of her like that. “I don’t intend to. I really love Piper, and my biggest regret right now is that I didn’t tell her, not even once. But I will, as soon as she’s awake.”

“Great, then.” Aphrodite’s smile softened. “Farewell, dear.”

In a blink, the goddess was gone, leaving her alone with Piper. She moved to stand beside her, admiring how the girl no longer looked lifeless.

“Gorgeous as ever, huh?” She leaned down to kiss her forehead. “I’m so glad you’re okay. I’ll be back soon.”

She almost wanted to laugh at the fact that she hadn’t even dealt with her emotions and the danger had already passed. Still, she wanted to see how Jason was doing and get the full story.

The boys were sitting on the docks, Jason with his head buried in his hands and Percy beside him, with a comforting hand on his shoulder. Leo sat across from them, seemingly dwelling on his own thoughts.

Percy had a helpless look on his face, which reminded Annabeth of how worried he’d been for Jason and how disappointed he’d been that Leo wanted to go after him. It was obvious that her oldest friend had feelings for the Roman demigod, so she told herself to ask him once things settled down.

“Hey.”

“Hey.” Leo was the only one who answered. “I guess you want to know everything in detail.”

“It’s because of me.” Jason snapped his head up, revealing his pale, tear stained face. “I’m the reason she— she almost died.”

“Jace, no...” Percy spoke softly.

“I shouldn’t have told her about the prophecy. It should’ve been me.”

“Come on, man. You know how angry Piper would’ve been if you’d done that. As much as we might hate it, she made a choice on her own.” The son of Hephaestus sighed, turning to her again. “Now, where were we?”

He told her about how Medea had wanted revenge on Piper for almost killing her, but had also said that there were bigger threats coming. He told her about how valiantly Piper fought, and about how she’d succeeded before Medea used her last breath to push her into the fire. He told her about how Medea had said that Piper was full of self-hatred and thought she deserved to die.

She felt sick. Why had Piper hidden those thoughts from her? Didn’t the girl trust her? Perhaps it was because she didn’t want her to worry, but still. She could’ve helped, at least given her comfort.

Anger bubbled up inside her chest again, at Piper and at herself.

They would have a long conversation once her girlfriend was fully recovered.

But for the moment, she would allow herself to ponder and sit in silence with her friends.

* * *

** Piper **

  
Piper woke up with an intense headache, eyes taking a few moments to adjust and focus on her surroundings. She recognized the room, it was on the Big House. They’d made their way back to camp.

And when she looked to her side, her heart leaped. A blonde girl was sitting beside her, hunched over a book .

“Annabeth.” Her voice came out hoarse and lower than she’d expected, but the alluded stopped reading and snapped her head up so fast that it was a surprise she didn’t break her neck.

“Piper!” Annabeth stood by the bed and caressed her cheek, relieved. “You’re okay.”

“Yeah.” Her hand came up to rest above the blonde’s, craving more physical contact. “What happened?”

Annabeth’s expression immediately shifted from relief to anger, her hand retracting from Piper’s face. “You’re an idiot, Piper McLean.”

“Why? Stay, please.”

She knew exactly why her girlfriend was mad, but it would be better if she heard her frustrations and thoughts before she jumped in and tried to make things right.

“You promised me.” Her grey eyes were clouded by tears, lips quivering. “You promised me you would stay alive. And you didn’t, Piper! You sacrificed yourself, your heart stopped! Jason managed to restart it, but your burns were so bad that you almost died again.”

“Annie...” The pain of seeing her breaking down was worse than any burn she could have.

“Don’t ‘Annie’ me!” Annabeth jabbed an accusatory finger at her. “The worst part was that I saw it, I dreamed about it! I couldn’t even breathe until you guys got here. When I saw you in Jason’s arms, unconscious, you looked so helpless... so lifeless. I felt like I was being sent back to Tartarus.”

“I’m sorry.” She felt tears fall down her cheeks. “I’m so sorry, Annabeth.”

“Why were you so reckless?”

“Because what kind of person would I be if I let Jason die because of me?”

“The kind that loves her girlfriend enough to keep her promise!”

She knew Annabeth didn’t want Jason to be dead, the girl was just upset and not thinking with a clear head. Still, she sat up straight and looked into her eyes, irritated over the suggestion that she didn’t love her.

“Well, I do love you!” She let the words wash over both of them, watching Annabeth’s shoulders visibly relax. “I love you so infinitely that even the universe isn’t big enough to describe it. But I couldn’t live with myself if I had let my best friend die for me. Please tell me you understand that.”

Annabeth nodded, climbing into bed and on top of her, knees on either side of her hips. “I love you too, so much.”

The words were far more healing than any ambrosia, filling Piper’s body with warmth and energy to lean up and press their foreheads together. “Gods, Annie, you’re the best thing that’s ever happened to me. I missed you more than anything.”

Annabeth let out a quiet sob and kissed her desperately, as if the world was about to end. She kissed back firmly, to reassure that she was really there, tasting the daughter of Athena’s salty tears and using her thumb to wipe them away.

“Piper. Piper.” Annabeth whispered her name out of breath, like a prayer. “My Piper.”

“I’m here.” Her fingers softly threaded through blonde hair as their lips connected again, briefly. “And I’m yours, for as long as you want me.”

Annabeth leaned down to press her lips on Piper’s jaw, making her close her eyes. “I’m never letting you go again.”

“Good.”

The blonde left feather-like kisses on her cheek, making her breath hitch. “I love you.”

“I love you too.” She hummed contently. “Wait, how is my whole body not useless? I was literally burned alive.”

“Oh, I forgot the most important part.” Annabeth sat up to look at her. “Your mother healed you. You just weren’t waking up, it’s been five days.”

“My mom? Aphrodite, goddess of love? Not medicine or healing?” She frowned.

“Percy had that reaction too.” The girl chuckled. “She’s a deity, she’s able to do many things. And she loves you a lot, so I guess that helped.”

Heat crept up her ears as she remembered that her mom had said she was her favorite child. Did Aphrodite know about her and Annabeth’s relationship? She had to, because she’d had the opportunity to ask Piper if she wanted to be a deity again, and she didn’t.

“Hm, okay.” A smile appeared on her lips. “I’m just glad I’m seeing your beautiful face again.”

“I’m still very mad at you.” The blonde gave her a serious stare. “But I’m also very in love with you and want to stay here with you forever.”

“Wouldn’t we be missed?”

“I wish we wouldn’t be.” Annabeth sighed. “But yeah, we have to get out of here eventually. Everyone is beside themselves, especially Jason. He only comes out of his cabin once a day to ask if you’ve woken up.”

Her stomach dropped. “Oh, Gods. I have to go see him.”

“Yeah. And we also need to talk about something.” Her girlfriend turned even more serious, knitting her eyebrows. “You think you deserve to die.”

_ Fuck. Fuck. Fuck. _

Hadn’t the girl just said she wanted to stay there with her forever? Bringing that up was the complete opposite.

“Uh...” She squirmed beneath Annabeth. “What makes you say that?”

“Leo told me everything.”

That stupid boy she called brother was going to regret being such a snitch.

“It’s just that... I’m not really used to sharing everything that’s on my mind.” She placed her hand on the blonde’s cheek, caressing it. “But I’ll try, okay? I want to stay here with you for a few moments, just the two of us. Can we?”

Annabeth smiled. “Of course we can, pretty bird.”

“Pretty bird?” She asked as they settled into a cuddling position. “I like that.”

“Yeah?”

“Mh-hm. I’d love anything you would like to call me.”

“Nice, ‘cause there’s more from where that came from.” Annabeth boped her nose. “And I finally know what you were calling me in French. Your little owl, right?”

“Yes. Do you like it?”

“I do. Plus, you’re kinda hot when you speak French.”

“Just kinda?”

“Oh, shush. Just hold me and close your eyes for a bit.”

With a laugh, Piper did as she was told, closing her eyes and feeling as if she’d never been on the verge of death.


End file.
